Take Me As I am
by Zebe oreo
Summary: Nick Roderick Spears "Fang": Famous singer who hates it. Maximum Ride: Street kid just trying to get through life. What happens when they suddenly cross paths?  Rated T because I've always been paranoid.
1. Chapter 1

**Take Me As I Am**

**Fang P.O.V**

Another day, another pointless concert. I looked from behind the curtains out into the crowd that had gathered. People were screaming, Posters were being held up and merchandise was being worn all over. It was enough to turn anyone's stomach or at least mine. The really sad part was that all the screaming, was reserved for yours truly, me, Nick Roderick Spears, and my for ever show off companion, James Griffith. I never actually liked my name. Those who I could actually say are my real friends called me Fang and trust me, it wasn't much.

A chant started going out into the crowd, "Nick! James! Nick! James! Nick!" I swear if it doesn't stop soon I'm going to have just get the hell out of here. It was giving me a head ache already. It was completely unreal. At least, it seemed that way to me even though I knew the crowd out there, the whole concert arena was totally real. I just really wished it wasn't.

I'll admit it, at first I loved the whole music business. Back when all it had been was my guitar, Iggy and I down in the subway. If someone saw me now they would have never thought I was that kid with the shaggy hair strumming on a guitar in the subway tunnels. They never would have guessed that Iggy was that pale blonde boy with ripped jeans beat boxing away, singing solos and playing the harmonica. Iggy's my closest friend and, if I had to be honest, my only real friend. The only friend I had before the supposed glory days.

I hope no one ever makes the connection between us then and us now. It had been better in the subway tunnel, more meaningful. Back then we had sung about different types of things and no one telling us what the hell to do or having someone manage our music. Now we had some stupid manager telling us how we ought to show off to the world. We have a band now which I won't deny is kind of cool except for the part where they would double as some sort of back up singers. No, not back up singers like you used to see all the time with Hannah Montana, the kind of vocal back ups. The ones the played instruments but didn't do around dancing. Back in the subway tunnel, we wrote on our own songs. Heck, we were lucky if we even got two of our own songs on our albums now a days.

It was nice at first when we got the whole 'I'll get you a record deal" sort of thing. Michelson had come to us while we were in the middle of one of the best songs we had ever come up with. He had stayed at the front of the small crowd that had gathered. He had stood there smiling, nodding approvingly as if that was what should have mattered most to us. At first, we had thought he was joking. When we realized he wasn't his nodding approval actually started to mean something. It meant no more having to come up with as many melodies as we could so we could earn enough money to eat. No more sleeping out in the streets, no more having to have people stare at us as if were delinquents, and no more having to use public restrooms to clean our selves. Not that Iggy had ever cared about hygiene but still. When Michelson offered, we immediately agreed.

You see, Iggy and I had been living out in the streets for two years before our manager showed up. Both our parents had kicked us out when we were fifteen. Iggy's had kicked him out because of his insane obsession with explosives. They had worn him not to blow anything else up but when the backyard shack had suddenly blown up they had it with him and kicked him out.

My parents, on the other hand, were something different. My dad had gotten fed up with me because of my supposed attitude. He said the reason I wore black was because I worshiped the devil, in fact, I was probably it's spawn. Not a very flattering description, I know. Well, technically, my parents hadn't really kicked me out. I pretty much walked out. A few days later when I saw my dad he told me never to come back. It has been pretty hard to show any emotion at all since then but it didn't matter much to me.

It did sort of bothered Michelson because he wanted me to be able to smile to my whole audience, something I refused to do. He wanted them all to fall in love with me like people usually did with their favorite artists. Then he stopped persisting when he realized people were loving Mr. Dark and mysterious Fang. The whole thing was pretty ridiculous but, hey, it's part of the business and I can't do much about it now a days, anyway.

"Fang," Fang said from behind me.

I turned to look at him. "Yeah?"

"It's our time to go on out on the stage."

"Great."

I pushed my self off the wall, grabbing my guitar on my way out. As soon as Iggy and I stepped onto the stage the whole crowd went wild. Everything got a hundred times louder making my head ache worsen. One year into this and already our own music had changed. It hadn't been our choice but it happened and there wasn't much of a chance to go back. All I knew was I hated the publicity, Iggy played with it, and Michelson thrived on it. It all seemed so out of place. But one thing I kept the same was the way I started a concert. I always sang one of our songs first. Always. It made it more us.

"_I watched the proverbial sunrise  
Coming up over the Pacific  
And you might think I'm losing my mind  
But I will shy away from the specifics  
_

_Cause I don't want you to know where I am  
Cause then you'll see my heart  
In the saddest state it's ever been  
This is no place to try and live my life _

_Stop right there!  
That's exactly where I lost it  
See that line?  
Well, I never should've crossed it  
__Stop right there!  
Well, I never should've said that  
It's the very moment that I wish that I could take back_

I'm sorry for the person I became  
I'm sorry that it took so long for me to change  
I'm ready to be sure I never become that way again  
Cause who I am hates who I've been  
Who I am hates who I've been..."

Sometimes I just wish we could have done it all over again.

* * *

"_Lifestyles of the rich and the famous  
they're always complainin  
always complainin  
if money is such a problem  
well they got mansions  
think we should rob them_

Fall

Lifestyles of the rich and the famous  
they're always complainin  
always complainin  
if money is such a problem  
you got so many problems  
think I could solve them

Lifestyles of the rich and the famous  
we'll take your clothes, cash cards, and homes  
just stop complaining  
Lifestyles of the rich and the famous  
Lifestyles of the rich and the famous  
Lifestyles of the rich and the famous"

I smirked at the lyrics of the song. Yeah, I was all rich and famous now but I had already lived the life of an 'ordinary' person so I didn't really feel that it all applied to me. Once We were off stage I looked over at Iggy. He nodded and I walked to the back door of the back stage room. It was almost a ritual for me to go outside after every concert, provided that there weren't any of those annoying reporters. With my luck, there probably would be, especially in California. We had to stay in this town for a whole month before Michelson figured out what we would do next.

So, here I am sneaking around the building hoping I wouldn't be seen by some crazed fan girls. It all seems really stupid to me. Before all the money, the equipment, the publicity, no one seemed to really care who Nick Spear or James Griffith were. To everyone who had ever seen us before this time we were just those two hobo kids singing for money. It all changed so quickly. It made me feel empty.

I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn't bother noticing the girl standing in the middle of the sidewalk as I turned the corner and crashed straight into her.

"Ow! What the?" The girl turned on me at the same time as she stepped into the shadows.

"Sorry," I mumbled not sure whether she had hid herself intentionally. Then again, if she had been a fan girl or a paparazzi she probably would have started bombarding me with questions.

I heard let out a frustrated sigh and then take in two deeps breaths. "No, it's okay," She sounded much more relaxed. "It's kind of my fault for standing here in the middle of the sidewalk like an idiot." She stayed silent for a minute then added, "Actually, I feel a little stupid at being caught off guard while staring at some stupid poster." She stepped out of the shadows letting herself being illuminated by the street light.

I looked her over for second. She looked just an a few inches shorter than me which meant she looked pretty tall. The street light shown on her enough to show she had blonde highlights in her brown hair but not enough to see her face clearly. I looked at what she was staring at. It was a poster for mine and Iggy's concert this night. Okay maybe second thoughts about the fan girl possibility are called for...

"So much attention over two people, don't you think?" She asked me silently, still looking up at the poster.

I looked at the poster again. Iggy and I were standing back to back in a dramatic stance. I remembered feeling extremely annoyed when the picture was taken. All around the poster there were weird designs and other things advertising how this was the best concert ever and people had to come see it. Just like all the other posters...

"Yeah."

"They're just kids after all. It's not as if there were anything ultra special about them. They can sing, big whoop," She continued.

I felt a little defensive about that even though I knew it was true. People went crazy over anything with talent that was publicized. "They're great at it, though."

She smirked at that. "Along with more than a hundred other people." She shook her head. "Look, I never said they weren't good at what they do. They really are talented but it's really only the music that I love. Actually, until tonight I would have said that the music was all that really mattered."

"And now?"

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Now, I can honestly say I feel bad for them." I gave her a confused look. She didn't notice. "You can tell all this really took it's tall on this guy." She pointed at me in the poster. "He made a really great start. You could totally tell his heart was in it but when he went through the other songs, it was as if he just started closing him self off. It was pretty obvious he didn't like what he was being made to sing, well, at least to me," she corrected her self. "I think everyone else was too preoccupied with dancing to the music and screaming. The girls always seem to be screaming their undying love." She laughed then as if it were the stupidest thing in the world and it kind of was true. It was pretty stupid. Her laugh had a small ring to it and it seem as if music it's self had come out her mouth. Not to be weird or anything. She sobered up then finished, "If I hadn't come here tonight I wouldn't have realized that these people," I swiped her hand past the poster. "Are real and they care. All the publicity is just an act. They probably needed the money really badly when they started off. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they had been living out on the streets."

I stared at the poster feeling very stunned. How could one girl be able to get so close to the truth by just looking at us? "If you didn't like those guys before, why did you come today?"

She laughed again and I couldn't help but smirk a bit. "You're just full of questions aren't?" I didn't answer. "Quiet, too. Well, to answer your question Mr. Dark and silent, my friends pretty much pleaded for me to come here. They saved up money to bring me and even though I told them to keep it they wouldn't give in. Then they used the Bambi eyes...I wasn't about to tell them no." She sighed then added, "I don't have enough money to spend anyway so it was a pretty good deal."

I noticed for the first time her baggy black shirt and her worn out jeans that were ripped at the bottom. She certainly didn't look like she had enough money. Either that, or she liked dressing as if she lived on the streets.

"Now let me ask you something," She said breaking me out of my thoughts. "Are you going to tell me what your name is so I don't feel like you'll turn into an Ax murderer any second now?"

I smirked. "Fang," Then I stepped into the light. "And yours is?"

"Max," she said sticking her hand out to shake mind. I didn't know what made me say my nickname but when I saw that she didn't seem to realize I was one of the guys she had been talking about, I didn't regret it.

"Well, nice talking to you and all, Fang but I got to split. Maybe I'll see you around," with that she turned on her heal and walked away.

I stood there wondering if I would actually see her around. She had been the first genuine person I had met in a really long time.

I hoped I would see her again.

* * *

**Well, tad-ah! Here's a few things you should know: No wings. No school and I'm not sure who in the flock will be in my story.**

**Disclaimer for the whole story: I'm not a man, and my Name is not James Patterson so I certainly don't own anything pertaining to his Maximum Ride series.**

**The music: Who I am hates who I've been- Relient K and Lifestyles of the rich and famous- Good Charlotte.**

**Thank you and I hope you like this.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Max P.O.V**

The concert ended almost an hour ago at ten thirty. Now it was past eleven and I was still fully awake. Ah, night time, when misfits and wanderers were welcomed all over except in the safest, most close-knitted neighborhoods. Of course, I fall into both categories because I don't generally seem to fit in anywhere except during the night when no one really seems to care who the hell you are or where you go. This actually works pretty well for me because let me tell you something I, Maximum Ride but you can call me Max, go everywhere and anywhere at night.

What do my parents think of this, though? Uh, nothing really seeing as one isn't in life anymore and the other kicked me out of the house. Well, he didn't really kick me out he just decided to lock me out of the house and told me never to come back when I was fourteen. I had to sneak in through the window of my room to get all my stuff. It wasn't exactly easy seeing as my old house was two stories but I made it just before he caught me. Let's just say Jeb seemed to blame all the follies in his life on me. What he didn't know was that I still forged his signature so I could attend school. He could take away my home, he could take away food, heck he could even take away the clothes on my back but I wasn't about to let him take away my whole life and dreams away from me. Yeah, I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to actually be doing when I go off to college but I still have a whole year to figure that out before I turn eighteen.

I walked down an alley and I started to think about the guy I had seen earlier. Fang, it sounded like a kind of name you got after ripping a bunch of people apart. I couldn't see him clearly because the streetlight had been so dull. Out of what was clear, he didn't exactly look as if he had been ripping people up lately. In fact, he had almost looked like Nick Spears. The realization had almost made me giggle. Almost.

The phone in my pocket started to vibrate just as I reached the exit of the alley. "Hello?"

"Max!" Ella shouted so loudly it made me pull the phone a foot away from my ear. "Where the hell are you? We've been looking for you for almost an hour!"

"Uh, and you just decided to call me?"

"Well, at first we didn't notice that you were gone," It was Nudge this time. "Then when we did we thought that you just went out for some air because you're like claustrophobic and all and there were a lot of people. Then me and Ella wanted to go buy some CD's and stuff that they were selling just outside the door. You know where they sell all the junk food stuff? Yeah and then I got really hungry so we got some candy and junk and OH! We got you a glow stick too and a poster cause I know how much you like their music but I thought that since you finally saw Nick and James in concert that you would naturally love them too, you'd be weird not to! Anyway, then Ella and I were about to go outside to look for you but _oh, my, gosh! _You wouldn't believe our luck! Just as we were going to the exit it was announced that James and Nick would be signing any merchandise for fans! But of course not to every one cause that would be just too much. They said ten people! Ten! We got picked but of course that was only cause Ella and me practically charged through the whole crowd. At first when we went in it was just James but then Nick came in a few minutes later and he's hot and all but he seems like such a jerk. Her barely talked at all! James, on the other hand, was so amazing! And get this! He smiled at Ella! I mean he smiled at everyone else too but he really seemed to like Ella. Like _really_ liked her. You should have seen her face, Max. She turned like three different shades of red and-"

"That's enough, Nudge," Ella interrupted belatedly.

"Oh and we got you a signed CD too!" Nudge practically yelled into the phone before Ella could take it away again.

"Max," Ella sounded like a scolding mother. "Where are you? We told you we were taking you home."

"Hm, well that's sort of a problem, Ella," I turned down into a dark area in town. "One, you don't even know where I live. And two, I told you I didn't want you to take me home."

"Oh, come on, Max," Ella sounded exasperated.

I shook then remembered she couldn't see me. "No, Ella. Besides I have some things to do tonight."

"At near_ midnight_?"

"Yep, bye, see you at school tomorrow." I hung up before she could say anything and shut off my phone. I walked two more blocks before I finally got to where I wanted to be, _The Swiz._

_The Swiz_ is like a small cafe only it could also doubled as a karaoke bar. Not that they ever let me drink but it was nice. I opened the door and waltzed straight in. I came here almost every other night and always on Sundays.

"Max," said an Italian man in his middle forties and who was also the owner of _The Swiz_. I made my way past the several small tables and into a booth that wasn't officially saved for me but it seemed to be established that way every time I came. "How are you?"

"Great. How bout you, Luciano?" I sat down and leaned back in my seat.

He smiled one of his big great father smiles. "Business is good. Max, I see no guitar with you! You are not going to sing for us tonight?" He asked noticing that I didn't carry the guitar that I usually did when I came.

I laughed before saying, "Not tonight there was a concert around here an hour or so ago. I don't want to have to give an anticlimax to anyone who went."

"Nonsense," He responded slightly offended in my behalf. "If anything it would be even better than the concert its self! If the manager of those two boys came by here he would drop them and offer you your own record deal!"

"And that," I cut in. "Is exactly why I won't sing tonight. I don't want to get all rich and famous than have it all turn me into something you wouldn't ever want to see. Then, the only thing that could get me out of it was if something ruined me. Nah, I rather just finish school and get into college so I can find something that won't end up making my life a living heck."

Luciano smiled approvingly. "You are something are something special, Maxie," He was the only one I ever let call me that. "But it is sad to think _The Swiz_ will have to go without your singing for a whole month."

My face snapped up to his. "What do you mean?"

"Maxie, you did not hear?" I gave him a confused look. "I will tell you. The manager came in this morning," He gave me a stern look for a second when he saw the look on my face that obviously read, 'good thing I wasn't here.' "He came in to have a small drink. He told me that he was planning on making the boys stay for a while. He did not sound certain as to what they were to do."

"What was he doing here in the first place?"

"Oh, you know the rich, Maxie. They like to show they keep in touch with the poor." I grimaced. He patted me on the back and said, "Do not worry, Maxie, if you do not want him around here he shall not be allowed into _The Swiz_."

"No, it's okay, Luciano. Really," I added when he looked uncertain. "I'll just stick with my nightly rituals. I doubt he'll come here at night and if he does, I doubt he would try to completely bombard me with record deals."

Another indignant look passed Luciano's face but he shook his face and said instead, "I will get you your coffee and a snack, how about it?"

"Thanks," I smiled gratefully then slumped back in my booth. Great, now I get to go to school hearing all the people around talking about Nick Spears and James Griffith. Don't get me wrong, I love their music. Especially the songs they had when they started out but wouldn't you get a little peeved too when all you heard were people obsessing over two people and not the music? The guys are okay, I guess. I mean after tonight, they seemed more real than ever before but the reason they did it was to have everyone listen to their music not obsess over them, right? It seemed that way to me over at the concert.

Luciano placed a small plate of food and a cup of coffee in front of me. "Here you go. Have you finished all your homework?" I nodded and he ruffled my hair gently. "That's my girl," he said then walked away.

Everyone acted ridiculous. No one even knew the actual people that James and Nick were and they still babbled about how they loved them or how so amazing they were. It all seemed a little sad. I wonder what they feel about it?Okay, what is really sad was that I was sitting here contemplating about something that didn't really pertain to me while I should be studying for my stupid Trig test tomorrow! Max is smart! Gasp! I know you wouldn't expect that from me by just looking at me but I am. It became a necessity when I realized the only way I was going to be able to get through life was by trying my hardest in school like everything else. I looked down at the food and then realized something else just a bit late. Or, more accurately, very late. I didn't have any of my books with me. Silently cursing my self in my head, I picked up my fork and started wolfing down all the food on my plate.

It was the stupid concert's fault. I usually brought a book or two with me. Ella and Nudge would have thought me insane if I had brought school work with us. Even worse, they would have asked what it was supposed to be for. I took out the notebook I carry with me everywhere from my pocket. With a pen in hand I positioned my hand to write. My hand froze. I put down the notebook and sighed. I wasn't sure what to write.

Suddenly, I felt really tired as if the whole weight of the world had come crashing into me. Silently, I put back my notebook. I took out my Mp3 instead from my other pocket and put the earphones in. I picked my coffee cup, leaning back and closing my eyes.

_"I will not make the same mistakes that you did_

_I will not let my myself cause my heart so much misery_

_I will not break the way you did_

_You fell so hard_

_I learned the hard way, to never let it get that far."_

My jaw clenched and my head jerked to the side.

_"Because of you_

_I never stray too far from the sidewalk_

_Because of you_

_I learned to play on the safe side_

_So I don't get hurt_

_Because of you_

_I find it hard to trust_

_Not only me, but everyone around me_

_Because of you_

_I am afraid..."_Words flashed through my mind. _"Don't ever think about coming back. You stupid piece of shit! Everything's your fault! Life will get you back, though, mark my words. One of these days life will hit you harder than that bullet hit your mother!"_ My head jerked the other way, as if I were having a bad dream.

_"I lose my way..._

_And it's not too long before you point it out._

_I can not cry_

_Because I know that's weakness in your eyes_

_I'm forced to fake a smile, a laugh_

_Everyday of my life._

_My heart can't possibly break_

_When it wasn't even whole to start with."_

I never cried since the day my mother died. Not even in the funeral. It had seem so impossible for me to do it. I was incapable of shedding one tear for the one person that had ever cared about me. The one person I had loved the most. I was only nine at the time.

_"Because of you_

_I never stray too far from the sidewalk_

_Because of you_

_I learned to play on the safe side_

_So I don't get hurt_

_Because of you_

_I find it hard to trust_

_Not only me, but everyone around me_

_Because of you_

_I am afraid."_

I had started taking up kick boxing, karate, women's self defense, anything I could when I turned twelve. I did it all so I could fight off Jeb when ever he tried hitting me. It didn't matter, anyways. I could never bring my self to hurt my own father. But I was always alert of anything since then and I had started having trouble controlling my own anger. It made everything worse because when Jeb would yell at me I would yell back and grab what ever was closest to me and throw it near him. He would always come at me then but I never fought back.

_"I watched you die_

_I heard you cry_

_Every night in your sleep_

_I was so young_

_You should have known better than to lean on me._

_You never thought of any one else_

_You just saw your pain._

_Now I cry in the middle of night_

_Over the same damn thing_

Because of you

_I never stray too far from the sidewalk_

_Because of you_

_I learned to play on the safe side_

_So I don't get hurt_

_Because of you_

_I tried my hardest just to forget everything_

_Because of you_

_I don't know how to let anyone else in_

_Because of you_

_I'm ashamed of my life because it's empty_

_Because of you_

_I am afraid..."_

I stood up abruptly and threw down the money I owed on the table more roughly than I usually did. Nobody knew about my past. I refused to tell anyone because I never trusted people anymore, even less with what had happened in my life.

"Leaving, Maxie?" Luciano asked. He had seen me get up.

I nodded. "I got a big test tomorrow."

"I wish you would not stay up so late," He said looking concerned. He acted so much like the father I wish I could have had.

"Yeah, well, I'll see you later." I looked out into the streets when I was outside then turned the corner to go "home," to that one bedroom apartment I managed to keep. The land lord seemed not to notice I was underage. I put my hands in my pocket and walked on. _'Just one more year, Max, and you won't have anything holding you back,'_ I shivered as an early autumn breeze rushed past me. _'One more year and you'll be off to college doing something useful with your life.'_ I heard the loud sounds of cars passing by but other than that it was pretty quiet out. I clenched my mouth.

_'Just one more year.'_

* * *

**You people are just so amazing. Don't forget it. I hope you liked this chapter and let me just say your reviews certainly raised my happiness level a few notches up:). I did not expect to get that many in my first chapter.**

**I forgot to add something else last time: I don't own any of the songs put on here unless said otherwise so, yeah. Also, I don't mean to offend anyone who actually is wealthy it's just the story. Just in case this seemed to attack the wealthy. Not my intention**

**Song:Because of you-Kelly Clarkson(it makes the part in the song better if you actually play it while you're reading.)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Fang P.O.V**

I woke up to the sound of Iggy yelling at something. "Shut up," I mumbled then I realized that the noise wasn't even coming from my room. It was coming from the luxury apartment's living room. Grumbling, I got up to see what all the fuss was about. The clock read elven o' clock in the morning. Eleven? Jeez, what the heck could be so important?

When I got to the living room, Iggy's face was bright red making it stand out against his usually pale complexion. Facing him we Michelson and he seemed more annoyed than angry.

"Ever since we started this it has always been about publicity and making money," Iggy shouted slowly making me wake up. "Look, I know we were poor and all but all I'm really asking is that you agree to put in some of our songs into our new album. We agreed to stay here for a month. The least you could do is put more of our own songs into our album. I repeat, our album."

Michelson put on his coat, looked in the mirror, then turned back to look at Iggy. "That wouldn't work. People get more excited about the new stuff nowadays. Your ratings might go down," He walked towards the door.

"You know what excites people more? Originality. You hear people rant and rave about that more than you do with anything else," Iggy said, clearly irritated.

Michelson paused with his hand on the doorknob. His eyes seemed to glow at the mention of that. "You're right. We'll put four in."

"Six," I snapped before I could help my self. Michelson looked at me as if he were about to argue. "Not one less."

Michelson gave me a resigned look before opening the door, "Fine."

The door shut with a silent thud behind him. Iggy plopped down onto the closest cushion. "Man, how do you do that?"

I looked at him. "What?"

"What you just did!" He said raising him self on his elbows. "If I could do that then I wouldn't have been here arguing with him for almost half an hour!"

I walked over to the kitchen. Man, I felt starved. "I don't know what you're talking about." I started ransacking all the cabinets.

Iggy rolled his eyes. "This whole thing you do with your eyes and the way you can make your voice sound scary when ever you want it to." I straightened up to look at him and he gave me a really goofy look that made him look like an idiot. "You know," He said in an equally goofy voice. "You really do have beautiful eyes."

I threw and apple at his head which he easily dodged. "Iggy," I opened the fridge. "Shut up."

"If you showed any emotion at all in them," he continued. "And if they weren't so cold most of the time, or if you didn't used them to make you cynical or if you would at least smile."

"Thanks," I mumbled. This stupid place didn't have any thing good to eat.

Iggy laughed then paused, "You know, I don't actually remember hearing you laugh. Maybe a chuckle or something but that's pretty much it." I straightened up and gave the whole kitchen a death glare. "Can't you just call room service?" Iggy suggested.

"This isn't a hotel."

"Luxury apartment, my ass," Iggy muttered under his breath. He looked around the place then said, "I don't really feel like cooking today."

I walked over and plopped down on the chair opposite to him. "I guess that leaves just one option."

"Eating out," I responded with a grimace.

"You're kidding!"

"No," I said as I turned on the T.V. "I'm not."

Iggy groaned then walked grumbling all the way to the kitchen. "I'll make omelets." He took out eggs from the fridge and added, "I'm not ready to face crazed fans just yet. That can wait till later."

I smirked. "What about that one girl from last night?"

Iggy turned a light shade of pink and bumped the top of his head with the fridge. "Uh, you mean Ella?"

"You remember her name?"

He went from light pink to bright red. "Yeah..."

"Why?" I scoffed.

"Maybe cause she was the only who didn't look possessed. Her friend was okay too but she sure talked a lot," He placed a pan on the stove then started cutting up an onion.

"More than a lot."

He stayed quiet for a while. "Where are we going to go later?"

I thought for a second then I remembered something, "Michelson mentioned this place." I moved around uncomfortable on the sofa chair. "Not many go there at night, apparently."

"What's it called?" Iggy said looking up from what he was doing.

"The Swiz."

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

**Max P.O.V**

By the lunch time, all that was to be heard around school were people trying to figure out where Nick and James were going to be while they stayed in town. Their music was played over loud speakers, everyone talked about how cool the concert had been, and the few people that got signed autographs talked about it as if they had won the lottery. Guys talked about how awesome their music was, which was totally okay with me. Girls talked about how really hot they were, which totally annoyed the heck out of me.

Of course, my friends and I have to be the exception to this. Don't get me wrong, they couldn't shut up about last night for most of the day but that was up until now. While most of the school was still ranting and raving about Nick and James, we were playing one of the most juvenile game ever invented.

"Okay, Truth or Dare Ella?" Nudge asked.

"I can't believe we're playing this," I muttered and rolled my eyes. After hearing the two of them talk about the concert and about how supposedly the famous James Griffith had developed a small crush on Ella, Nudge had burst out into a small rant about how she just couldn't believe this was our last year in high school. Then she started saying that when we finally got to go to college we wouldn't be able to do the little things that little kids do. Which led to us playing a small game of Truth or Dare.

"Truth," Ella responded after a thoughtful pause.

"Who do you think is better? James or Nick?"

Ella blushed a bright red and I let out a frustrated sigh. I had thought they were through with that. "Vocally or instrumentally?" I said before I could stop my self.

"Personality wise."

I scoffed. "She doesn't know them! She couldn't answer that!"

"We went backstage to get autographs," Ella countered defensively.

I sent her a look, "That's not long enough to decipher someone's personality."

Nudge let out her own frustrated sigh then amended, "Fine. First impression wise?"

I nodded approvingly. "James," Ella gushed.

"Okay, Max," Ella eyed me challengingly. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare." Even as a kid I had always chosen dare. I figured there wasn't much a person could tell about you that way.

"I dare you to go with Nudge and me to the mall then to the movies tonight," Ella said quickly which made me think that this was all probably planned.

"Sorry," I chuckled. "No can do."

"What? Too scared of the mall?" Ella challenged. "Come on, I even threw in the movies."

I shook my head. "First of all, the mall is a pretty scary place. Second of all, I have plans tonight."

Nudge gawked. "You have plans on a Monday night? What on Earth could you possibly be doing on a Monday night?"

I stood up stretching my back out. "Well for one thing, work."

Ella rolled her eyes and said, "Can't Luciano give you a day off for tonight?"

"Nope," I shook my head. "He pays me more than he pays anyone else." By that I meant he let me have my meals for free except for coffee because I felt I had to pay him at least something. "Besides tonight's my night." I sat back down on the grass where we were sitting.

"No way!" Ella squealed. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"It's not like you haven't seen me before."

"But we love to," Nudge countered. "Like, all the time. You and the kids."

"They're not that much younger than us," I grinned then the bell that signaled the end of lunch rang. "You two can come if you want after your escapade to the mall but I won't be going with you." I started off for my Trig class.

* * *

**Fang P.O.V**

Iggy looked ridiculous in his disguise for the night. He had insisted that he didn't care if not many people came to the Swiz, someone would recognize us and before long there would be crazy fans crowded around the whole place. He was still paranoid about it because of the one night we were at a small restaurant in Arizona. Two people recognized us then in a record time the place was swarming with fans.

Now he was sitting beside me in the car with a brown curly wig and orange skin because he put on a light layered tan on his skin. He managed to smear my whole face with it after I stated I wasn't going to bother with a disguise. Now I was darker than I usually was. Thank fully I didn't have that oompa loompa look Iggy had started off with. I parked the car in front of a little cafe looking restaurant that completely stood out in this small worn out looking city. Iggy and I walked quietly into the restaurant. The manager of the place had been expecting us and as planned he promised not to reveal who we were to anyone. After that we made our way to a small booth and sat down.

Iggy relaxed back into the seat while putting his head behind his back. "Well, I have to hand it to Michelson. This is really nice for a small cheap restaurant."

"It's not cheap," A girl snapped at him. We raised our heads, she was standing next to me but was entirely focused on Iggy, glaring at him. "And just for that it'll be more. This is a cafe and it is very sophisticated for also doubling as a type of karaoke bar."

Iggy stiffened at the girl's reprimand and I choked back a chuckle. This girl definitely seemed not to notice that we were the famous Nick and James duo and even if she had I had the feeling she wouldn't have cared.

"So, uh," Iggy said after a while. "What are you supposed to do?"

The girl raised her eyebrow. "I'm in charge of anyone who sits at this table, lucky you," she added with a smirk.

"I think I'll go to the bathroom," Iggy mumbled and charged off even though I knew he had no idea where it was.

The girl looked down at the note pad she was holding then said to me, "What can I get for you?"

I stared at her for a second. I felt as if I had known her from before. Her brown hair held natural blonde highlights, her eyes were a light creamy brown and she looked tall. Her face well, I have to admit she was really pretty. Her skin was lightly tanned completely unlike Iggy's current fake one. There were some light muscles visible on her arms which made it obvious she worked out. She coughed a little interrupting my evaluation of her.

"Do I know you from somewhere?"

She sighed irritatedly and a big scowl appeared on her face. She was still peering down at her note pad when she answered, "If you're one of the obnoxious kids from school, I'm spitting in your drink. If that was supposed to be some lame pick up line, I'm spitting in your drink and your food. Now what would you like."

It was definitely none of those and I looked at her slightly bewildered. "An apology?" I suggested dryly.

She looked up sharply, looking me over. A very light but very present shade of pink filled her cheeks. She smiled sheepishly at me. "Be right out after I eat a piece of humble pie," she responded apologetically. "Sorry, it's a reflex. You were serious, weren't you?"

"Yep," I replied.

She looked me over, trying to figure out who I was when her eyes widened with shock. Darn, maybe she knew I was Nick. "You're Fang aren't you?" She gasped. "From last night? I'm Max. Remember?"

I bit back a grin when I realized she had been the girl from last night. I nodded.

She shook her head. "Sorry about that. This is the last place I would have thought I'd see you again at."

"Why?"

She leaned against the table. "People don't come to the Swiz often. Especially not at night. That's why I like it here. It's like a home to me. Anyway, what can I get you?"

I looked at the untouched menu in front of me then back at Max. "What do you suggest?"

"The cannoli," she responded quickly. "Definitely. Luciano makes the best. You've never had cannoli until you've had the cannoli here at The Swiz."

"You're right," I said looking into her eyes. "I've never had cannoli.

Her jaw dropped. "You're kidding?" I shook my head. "Well, then prepare your self. You're going to love. Tis delish." She smiled smugly. She looked at the other side of the table and added, "I'll even bring some for your snobby friend and some pasta. It's pretty good too." She quickly wrote it down on her note pad then walked off.

I stared after her realizing that she looked just as comfortable as she was on the street the other night as she was here. It surprised me that she would be comfortable in the streets at all. Iggy and I never really liked it. We were accustomed to it but we were never comfortable.

Iggy slid back into his seat with his arms crossed over his chest. "I have to hand it to you Fang, you really know your way around girls." I gave him a blank stare. "I swear your immune to everything you do."

I shrugged then looked away. This was a cozy looking cafe. It had darkened lights and everything was elegant looking but by the feel of the seat I was on, it was pretty darn comfy. I located the bathrooms at the back corner of the room and the kitchen was opposite to it. None of the people seemed to have uniforms which gave everything a more casual sense. There were big curtains around the windows. The doors were made out of glass and coming through them were...I froze and my eyes widened half a centimeter.

I turned to look at Iggy then whispered, "Your girlfriend is here."

"My what?" He looked sharply at me then I motioned to the door. His eyes widened when he recognized the girl Ella and her friend. He stared at me accusingly "You think your girlfriend gave us away?" I kicked him under the table.

"Shut up," I muttered. I noticed Max walk out of the kitchen and I wondered if she could have actually had time to tell some of her own friends that we were here. How could she even recognize us? Iggy looked nothing like him self and we were dressed in some cheap beat up clothing. Max was carrying our food and walked to our table with her friends trailing behind.

"You two actually came," She was saying as she got to us. "I'm impressed."

"You kidding?" asked the one who I knew talked a lot. "We love coming to see you! I mean Ella can see you a lot here cause you both work here on Thursdays but I don't!" She laughed then hugged Max almost making her drop the food. "Oops, sorry."

Max shook her head at her then placed the two plates she was carrying on the table. She straightened up then stood in between us and her friends. "Fang," she said looking at me. "These are my friends, Nudge and Ella." She turned to her friends then said, "Nudge and Ella, this is Fang and err." She looked confusedly at Iggy.

"Iggy," He provided helpfully grabbing at a piece of cannoli. He turned a feint shade of pink when Ella looked at him. So much for the crazed fans idea.

"Um," Nudge said biting her bottom lip. "No offense or anything cause you really do look great but that isn't a real tan is it?"

"No," Iggy responded reddening, though you couldn't really tell underneath all that tan.

"Oh, my, gosh I thought so! If you said it was, I would have called you a total liar! I mean nobody has that kind of tan naturally like, seriously. No offense, of course. You pull it off quite well though it looks like you're a noob at it. Oh my gosh! I'm sorry! I didn't-" Suddenly someone's hand slapped over her mouth.

A blonde boy stood next to her and laughed. He had big blue eyes and he had a small earring at the top of his left ear. He had a big smile on his face and he looked kind of young. He wrapped his arm around Max's shoulders.

Max laughed. "Gazzy, this is Fang and Iggy. This," She said smiling at him. "Is my brother Gazzy."

I raised my eyebrows in unison as Iggy said, "Gazzy?"

The guy, Gazzy? Laughed out loud as if it were the funniest thing in the world. "Ooh, cannoli!" Max smacked his hand away.

"Don't ask," Ella mumbled.

"They'll find out soon."

"Ew! Gross Gazzy," Nudge smacked Gazzy on the arm.

Gazzy rubbed his arm. "I didn't say immediately."

Max crinkled her nose. "Just go on stage."

Gazzy's face perked up. "Which one are we doing?"

"The one we wrote."

"What? Did you have one?"

Max grinned at him then said, "No."

"Great," Gazzy said taking his arm off of Max. "I'll go get Angel so she can help me set everything up."

Max turned to all of us. "Enjoy your cannoli I gotta go up there." She trailed behind Gazzy and I sat there confused as to what they were going to do.

"You're going to want to watch this," Ella said.

"Watch what?" Iggy asked through a mouthful of pasta.

"The most amazing singers in the world!" Nudge replied excitedly. "They could put Nick and James out of business! They're just that awesome. Angel doesn't really sing with them but she's great with the instruments. Max says that she's better than James Griffith at the guitar and piano! They could probably be famous if anyone from the big leagues offered them a record deal!"

Iggy looked at me slightly bewildered at the fact that some girl was better at him at two of his preferred instruments. In fact, I felt slightly offended too but I wanted to hear if what Nudge had said was true. I turned all of my attention up to the small stage. There was a girl now joined with Gazzy and Max. She had the same big blue eyes as Gazzy and her hair fell onto her shoulders as small curls. I was guessing this was Angel. Surprisingly, she did kind of looked like an Angel. Gazzy and Angel were both talking to Max but she kept shaking her head at them. Finally, the young girl, Angel, gave her puppy dog eyes and by the look on Max's face, she had conceded. Gazzy grinned then walked up to the microphone.

"Ello, errybady," He spoke into the mic. All the people who were in the cafe started to clap wildly. "Today we have two new songs for you. The first one is something Max wrote today, it's pretty chill if you ask me. So, with out further adieu, I present the one, the only, the amazing, the one who can't tame her hair, the one who can eat faster than think, the one- What was that?" Gazzy grinned at what ever Max had said. "Did I forget to mention the incredibly rude?" Gazzy asked and the small crowd chuckled. "Anyway, here she is, Maximum Ride!"

Max walked up to the microphone slightly smacking Gazzy upside the head. "Yeah, uh, thanks Gaz." She smiled at the crowd and I felt slightly drawn to her, waiting for what ever she might say next. "I though up of this one a few hours ago so sorry if it sucks." Max started to sing and the crowd went crazy over her than instantly died down. Everyone was captivated.

"I'm so tired of being here  
Suppressed by all my childish fears  
And if you have to leave  
I wish that you would just leave  
'Cause your presence still lingers here  
And it won't leave me alone

These wounds won't seem to heal  
This pain is just too real  
There's just too much that time cannot erase"

Gazzy and Angel walked up to Max to hold her hand as if they sensed that what she was singing caused her some sort of pain. Even though it was unintentional, the effect they made was stunning.

"When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears  
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears  
And I held your hand through all of these years  
But you still have  
All of me

You used to captivate me  
By your resonating light  
Now I'm bound by the life you left behind  
Your face it haunts  
My once pleasant dreams  
Your voice it chased away  
All the sanity in me

These wounds won't seem to heal  
This pain is just too real  
There's just too much that time cannot erase."

A few people started to cry and I was surprised. None of my music ever made anyone cry. Come to think of it, I wasn't sure if we ever even made anyone feel emotion.

When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears  
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears  
And I held your hand through all of these years  
But you still have  
All of me

I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone  
But though you're still with me  
I've been alone all along

When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears  
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears  
And I held your hand through all of these years  
But you still have  
All of me."

As soon as Max stopped singing every one got up and started clapping. It was great, no doubt about it. Even Iggy stood up and clapped with everyone else.

The threesome hugged and then Gazzy took back the microphone. "Aw shucks," He smiled down at everyone. "She really got you this time, didn't she?" The small crowd cheered and his grin grew. "Well, enough of that! Let's have some fun!" Angel stood up beside the piano, laughing. Max grinned and Gazzy spun around in a circle then started to sing.

"Where is the moment we needed the most  
You kick up the leaves and the magic is lost

They tell me your blue skies fade to gray  
They tell me your passion's gone away  
And I don't need no carryin' on

You stand in the line just to hit a new low  
You're faking a smile with the

coffee, you go  
You tell me your life's been way off line  
You're falling to pieces every time  
And I don't need no carryin' on."

He took Max by the hand and she danced next to him as if they were just two siblings playing around. Angel swayed a little to the beat. Then they joined together.

"Because you had a bad day  
You're taking one down  
You sing a sad song just to turn it around  
You say you don't know  
You tell me don't lie  
You work at a smile and you go for a ride  
You had a bad day  
The camera don't lie  
You're coming back down and you really don't mind  
You had a bad day  
You had a bad day."

By the looks on their faces it was obvious they didn't have a bad day. A little old couple stood up to dance along and they looked care free. Gazzy let go of Max then swayed next to Angel toying a little with her piano keys.

"Will you need a blue sky holiday?  
The point is they laugh at what you say  
And I don't need no carryin' on

You had a bad day  
You're taking one down  
You sing a sad song just to turn it around  
You say you don't know  
You tell me don't lie  
You work at a smile and you go for a ride  
You had a bad day  
The camera don't lie  
You're coming back down and you really don't mind  
You had a bad day

(Ooh.. a holiday..)

Sometimes the system goes on the blink  
And the whole thing turns out wrong  
You might not make it back and you know

That you could be well oh that strong  
And I'm not wrong

(yeah...)

So where is the passion when you need it the most  
Oh you and I  
You kick up the leaves and the magic is lost"

The three of them pretended to kick at leaves in unison.

Cause you had a bad day  
You're taking one down  
You sing a sad song just to turn it around  
You say you don't know  
You tell me don't lie  
You work at a smile and you go for a ride  
You had a bad day  
You've seen what you like  
And how does it feel for one more time  
You had a bad day  
You had a bad day."

**Max P.O.V**

Everyone was laughing as they clapped for us and my heart filled with joy as I walked off the stage with Angel and Gazzy. I looked at the two and I wondered what would have happened if I didn't find Angel that day she had almost been raped. I cringed away from the thought.

Angel and Gazzy came from a poor and very abusive family. Their dad drank and their mom did drugs. Together they both hit Angel and Gazzy, they also verbally abused the two. Gazzy had had enough one day and tried running away from home. He was fourteen and Angel was twelve. Angel wouldn't have been able to go through it all without him so she went after him. Angel had been a long way behind Gazzy. She got lost and had decided to ask for help. She didn't get the help that she wanted. Instead she was forced into a dark alley by a strange fat middle aged man. I was walking around at night when I heard her screaming for help. When I got to them the man was hitting Angel trying to get her to stop screaming. I'm not an expert but I'm pretty sure that's not how you make someone shut up. The sight of it all made me sick to the core. The next few minutes was a complete blur to me. I fought a couple of people living on the streets but here was a man hurting an innocent girl.

By the end of it, Angel and I were running away from unconscious man with a broken arm. We ended up finding Gazzy five blocks away behind a dumpster. When he found out what had happened to Angel, he was furious and ashamed of him self for not being there. Ever since then, they rarely went anywhere without one another. I made them go back home to get their things then I took them to the Swiz. I had met Luciano after four months of being on my own. He found me sleeping underneath one of his booths one night. Although I refused his offer to live with his family, I accepted his job offer and the free food offer. I asked him if he would be willing to pass his offer to two of my friends. When he saw Angel and Gazzy he instantly agreed. His son was grown up and his daughter was the only one who lived with him and his wife. That marked the day of my close friendship with Gazzy and Angel so in a way they were like a brother and sister to me.

"That was awesome!" Iggy said grinning at us. I smiled back at him. I didn't actually hold any hard feelings against him. "But to be honest, I can't really believe the three of you are related."

"We're not. Just me and Gazzy," Angel said sweetly. "But Max has always been like a big sister to us." I smiled at her and she onto my hand like she did the first day. The difference was she was fourteen now. "And Luciano is like our papa."

As if on cue Luciano appeared out of no where. "That is right," Our only good father figure said to the group. "These kids are like my own." He hugged all of us including Ella and Nudge.

Fang stood up and Iggy followed his lead. "Well, this was great but we have to go. Maybe we'll see you all around." Iggy grinned at all of us and Ella hugged him impulsively making him blush. I had to bite back a laugh.

"Bye," Fang said to everyone. He looked at me. "Cool song."

"Thanks," I smiled.

"He means amazing," Iggy clarified. "Mr. Rock has problems saying what he means. If rocks could talk that is." He received a good smack in the head by Fang. They paid Luciano and we all said our good byes. "Later!" Iggy called as they walked away.

We watched them go. The something Angel told me that bothered me all night popped back into my head.

What were Nick Spears and James Griffith doing in a small town cafe like the Swiz?

* * *

**Okay sorry for all the grammar/spelling mistakes.**

**And so I'll answer any questions before they arise: No not every chapter will have a song. And ABSOLUTELY NO NAZZY!Ah!**

**Anyway, Songs: My immortal-Evanescence and Bad day-Daniel Powter**


	4. Chapter 4

**Max P.O.V**

Though I can pretty much get all my meals for free over at the _Swiz,_ I still need to keep food in my own apartment just in case. As much as I would love to, I couldn't completely live on flavorful oh so-good Italian foods. Then again, it wasn't exactly safe for me to live off of my own cooking. I could make a sandwich, bowl of cereal...actually the only thing I actually knew how to bake were cookies. I am very serious about my cookies.

I turned into the aisle where all the frozen food products were. I checked my watch: 12:30 AM on a Wednesday. I sighed and looked around. I was in the twenty four hour super market in town. I was grateful for this store because it gave me something else during my nightly journeys. I spent most of my nights at the _Swiz _doing homework or singing. If I wasn't then I was just strolling through the streets looking for something interesting to do or at here at the market to stock up with some food. If I made it home in time I'd fall asleep for an hour or two then go to school. I usually spent my afternoons sleeping then going to work. I wasn't exactly a day person. The other reason I didn't go out a lot during the day was because I didn't want to risk bumping into Jeb. I stayed in this town because I could switch schools without Jeb or social services finding. I was still legally underage. If anyone found out Jeb had kicked me out then he could go to jail, which I didn't mind a whole bunch, and I would have to go to some foster home, which I minded a lot.

As I trotted around from aisle to aisle my thoughts went from my history test on Friday to Fang. Funny how that can happen. Frowning at the scale as I measured the kiwis I place, I thought again why Nick and James would be at the _Swiz_ late at night. They probably didn't want to get mobbed by a group of fan girls or the public. Yet, it seemed strange to me that they would choose the _Swiz_ of all places. I thought that famous people liked publicity but then again who would? They were probably sick of it.

_'Fine,'_ I decided contently putting back one kiwi. _'If that's what they want then that's what they are getting.' _There would be no special treatment for them, especially from me. That was, if I ever did see them again.

"Hello, Max."

My elbow jerked backwards hitting someone hard in the gut. I swerved down and kicked whoever was behind me behind the legs making them fall backwards. I raised my head in time to see Fang fall with a few potatoes scattering beside him.

"Speak of the devil," I muttered even though technically I was only thinking about him. Okay, that sounded weird. Fang shook his head then glowered at me. "And he shall come." I returned the glare with one of my own.

"Okay, I definitely deserve an apology for that," Fang held his hand out at me as if expecting me to help him up.

Again, I repeat, no special treatment. I crossed my arms over my chest. "For what? Self-defense?"

"That's not self-defense," He mumbled getting himself up then picked up everything that had fallen out of his small basket. "Didn't even attack you."

"Bah!" I picked up the bag of kiwis I left on the scale, tied it and then threw it into my cart. "Could have fooled me. Didn't anyone ever teach you not to sneak up on people?"

"I didn't."

"Uh, yeah you did." I pushed my cart over to the strawberries. This was weird I had seemed him three times in less than a week. "This is creepy. Are you stalking me?" I asked voicing my thoughts.

"What?" Fang's face was incredulous. "No."

"Are you sure you're not stalking me? I swear you're stalking me."

"Don't flatter yourself."

"Har, har." I looked at the strawberries wondering if I really wanted some.

Fang stayed silent for a while, big surprise, then said, "What are you doing here at past midnight?"

"I could ask you the same thing," I decided on taking just one package of strawberries. It was true, I could ask him what the heck he was doing in a supermarket but I already knew the answer to that. He wanted to avoid being swarmed by fans. But wouldn't they be staying at a hotel? No, it wouldn't be comfortable for a month. They were probably stuck living somewhere where they had to fend for themselves or had a cook. "You ran out of food?"

"Nothing good," He responded. "You?"

"Just stalking up," I said then picked up a can of whip cream near the strawberries. I placed it in the cart. What else do I need?

Fang looked into the cart. His eyes grew slightly. I had a couple of things from each aisle so it was pretty full. "How many people are in your family?"

I stiffened a little. "Just me and my dad," I said carefully looking away.

"You need all this for just the two of you."

Out of my few encounters with Fang, I wasn't quite used to him talking so much. "I eat a lot."

"I bet."

I shot him a glare then contemplated my cart. That seemed like everything.

"Sorry, didn't mean it that way," Fang picked up his own can of whip cream. He started looking for some other things.

"Aren't you going to get strawberries?"

"For what?"

I rolled my eyes. Celebrity of not, he was still some adolescent guy. "So, where's Iggy?"

"Sleeping?"

"That's nice." I started to wheel my car to the checkout line. Fang fell behind a bit as he was getting eggs then appeared behind me again. I emptied my cart then looked up to the person at the cash register. "How's it going, Mark?"

"Hey, Max," Mark greeted scanning my food. "Good, you? You're really gonna get me workin' tonight." He said referring to my food.

"Same ol', same ol'," I went to the baggage area. "Yeah, I know but that's me." I was prone to helping out Mark with my groceries. It seemed only fair.

"Heard your dad's going out of town," He remarked carefully. Mark was five years older than me and knew me since we were kids. He was also the only one that knew about my family. He had found me sleeping in the storage area two days after I was kicked out. He had asked me to stay with him and I accepted. I stayed a while until two weeks passed and my father had chosen to stop by. I had sneaked away in time. I didn't know what he would have done and I didn't want to. If he did anything I didn't want Mark around or else fight him. I wasn't ready for that.

"Yeah," My eyes flicked over to Fang then to Mark. Mark caught my eye then got the signal. Fang was carefully unloading his own groceries. His hoodie was up and you could barely make out his face, his hair covered his eyes.

"Going to New York," Mark ventured. It was the way he told me what was going on with Jeb. I wasn't completely oblivious to what Jeb.

My heart sped up and my paced quickened as I bagged my stuff. "Yeah, he's just going to visit some family. How did you hear?" Jeb had an affair with Sheridan Tenting a year after my mom died. She had gotten pregnant. Ari and she lived in New York. I had been protective of him for the one year they lived with us. I had been heartbroken when they left. Sheridan had wanted to take me but legally she couldn't. They had never gotten married.

"He came by here yesterday afternoon," Mark said. "I think he said he was leaving today. A few weeks." He scanned the rest of my things. "He's been looking good these couple of months." This translated into 'he's been getting sober.'

I smiled cheekily. "I bet." _'I wonder.' _I paid then I slowly pushed my cart out of the store to the bike I brought with me tonight. I didn't drive, I couldn't without Jeb. It angered me to know how many of the things I could or couldn't do all depended on Jeb. He left today to go see Sheridan and Ari. He was going to be gone for a couple of weeks. This was at least was half of some good news. I couldn't be all that certain that he wasn't going to do anything bad. I had a tall cart like basket attached to my bike for groceries. I loaded them in. As a habit, I looked at the receipt. I froze in my place. Right at the bottom of the receipt was scrawled; _He's getting married to Sheridan._ I tried processing this but couldn't. How on Earth was he getting married to Sheridan? When did he talk to Sheridan? And what the hell did he tell her about me?

"Need a ride?"

I turned around to see Fang with his hood down standing a few feet away with groceries in his hands. "I would but I'm scared of you stealing my food." No, I just didn't want him to know where I lived.

He looked me up and down. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen, you?" Of course I already knew the answer to this.

"Eighteen." He looked at my bike then at me. "Sure you don't want a ride?"

"Sorry," I said climbing onto my bike. "I'm not allowed to get into cars with strangers."

He walked so quietly I didn't even notice Fang walk up to me. I turned my head and was startled to see him so close to me.

He put his mouth next to my ear and my breath quickened. "I'm not a stranger, Max," Fang pulled away smirked. My unsettling mood returned to normal. "You know me."

"But you don't know me," I turned my bike then pedaled away. When I was a safe distance away I pulled out my phone. I called Mark and waited for him to pick up. Yeah, I don't care if it's unsafe to talk and ride.

Mark answered, "Max?"

"How is that possible? What did he tell her?" I demanded.

"Look, I have no idea either," Mark said slightly defensive. "He just walks in, buys a bag of chips then he drops that big of news on me."

A car passed me and I could have sworn I saw Fang in it. "Yeah, but what did he tell her, about me?"

"Well, I asked him how you felt about this. I told him I've seen him a lot but I haven't seen you in years." I looked ahead of me. "You know, so I wouldn't give away that I've seen you. Then he said," He scoffed on the other line. "He said you were totally cool with it, the only reason I haven't seen you was that he sent you to boarding school."

It was my turn to scoff, "I wish."

"I know," He made a small pause then, "Hey, Max? Who was that guy behind you in the checkout line? He looked familiar."

"I'm sure he did," I muttered. "Look, I got to go, I'm riding on my bike and all."

"Sure, later. Take care."

"Yeah, you too." I slowed down a bit so I could carefully put back my phone. Then I started to speed up. The wind started to beat against my face. It was as if I were flying. I wish I could, I wished it with all that I was worth. The world had tumbled on to my shoulders again. Was Jeb really sobering up? Was he really marrying Sheridan? How was Ari? Why was I bumping into Fang everywhere?

I slowed down. This last question confused me. Why did I care anyway? I shook my head. So many things wrong with the world and I deemed that important?

I sped up my bike. I hoped if I went fast enough I would grow wings and fly up into the sky. I could escape my whole past.

I would just be flying.

* * *

**So, this took a while to update because I refused to update this story until I updated my other story. So, yep. Short I know but I hope you all like it :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Max P.O.V**

So, many different squares on a stupid cube, it's ridiculous. I heard shuffling from behind then a few whispers. I concentrated harder turning one way then the other. The whispering grew louder, I tried not to grind my teeth. Turn one way, now the other, nope still nothing. Suddenly the whispering ceased and I sighed with relief.

"Max." I almost dropped what I was doing. "Max," Angel said again. "Go home or go to sleep." I ignored her.

"Maybe we should leave her alone," Gazzy said uneasily. "She seems to be on a roll."

"Literally," Angel muttered. It was true, I was on a roll, a dinner roll. I hadn't noticed and now that I had I was to lazy to lose my concentration so I could get up and throw it away. I didn't want even a minute to think about anything other than what I was doing.

"Max," Angel said sweetly for the third time. As if she never said anything in a sweet tone. "This isn't helping getting rid of your insomnia."

"I don't have insomnia," Maybe if I turned it this way, no, that would mess everything up. "I sleep during the day."

I saw Gazzy grin a little from the corner of my eye. "She has a point."

"It could be a type of insomnia," Angel clipped in reply. "Have you even done your homework? You have school in like an hour!"

I slammed the rubrics cube on to the table which made them visibly flinch. "So do the two of you so why are you bothering me and not taking advantage to sleep?"

"Luciano told us to tell you to go to sleep," Gazzy informed with a yawn.

I shook my head. "Well, I'll have you know this is my homework."

Gazzy took the rubrics cube from my hand. "This," he said. "Is your homework?"

"I'm supposed to learn a lesson from it or something then present what I learned to the class."

"Like in the pursuit of happiness?"  
I stared at Gazzy. "The pursuit of what?"  
"Happiness only it's spelled with a y in the movie..." Gazzy blinked. "Oh. Oh, that's right. You don't watch movies."

It had been at least two years since I had last seen a new movie. The only movies I watched now a days were the Disney movies Luciano kept in stock. My money was better spent on food, clothes, and music. The rest of what I had went straight to my college savings. I looked back at the rubrics cube I had slammed on the table. I shook my head and said, "Forget it. This whole thing is pointless," I picked up the cube and put on my forgotten backpack. "I already learned my lesson from this anyway." Standing up from the booth, I walked towards the door.  
"What was it?" Angel called after me.

"People waste their time doing stupid things."

"Where are you going?"

I was out before I had the time to answer her. To be honest, I wasn't sure my self where I was going. Maybe to my apartment to dwindle away the last hour before heading to school or maybe to school where there wasn't much to think about other than school it's self. I just knew I wanted to leave.

* * *

As it turned out, I didn't go to my apartment. I didn't even go to school. I came to the last place on Earth I thought I would ever return to. The place where, for the first fourteen years of my life, I called home.

It was still dark when I arrived in front of the small red house I used to live in. I didn't know what I was doing there or why I had come in the first place. All I knew is that I couldn't stand there for very long without going unnoticed. The sun would soon be coming up and people would start waking up to leave for work or school. I walked to the side gate that had always been left loosely locked. I tried my luck and reached over. The latch was barely set and the gate opened by its own command. I breathed in deeply and walked in. I looked up to the tree that led up to my room.

Without thinking twice, I started to climb up. At first, I stumbled clumsily as I tried to readjust myself to climbing up the dear tree that had helped me escape that one faithful night. Carefully, I peered into my room and hoping against hope I pushed on the window not knowing what I was expecting to happen until it moved ever so slightly. Pushing harder this time, I moved the window up until there was enough open for me to squeeze through and I slipped in.

I fell with a thump on the floor, the air being flushed out of me. I laid there paralyzed for a moment on the familiar floor waiting for someone who wasn't home to come barging into the room screaming and throwing bottles everywhere. They never came.

Slowly the realization that no one would be coming in swept over me and I raised my self up on my feet. I looked around my old room, surprised to see that everything looked exactly as it had the last time I had been in there. The bed undone, glass on the ground, the door tightly shut, the lock tightly set. A feeling of nostalgia came over me, making me feel sick to the core. Yet, for some odd reason, I didn't want to leave yet so I sat down, away from the glass, and fell asleep.

-  
The phone rang, waking me up. I stayed very still and listened.

_ "This message is from the Green ville high school to inform you that your student, Maxine Batchelder, has not been to school today..."_

Unlocking my bedroom door took a bit of an effort but I ran down stairs as fast as I could to the answering machine, immediately erasing the message. Just as soon as I had done so, I drew my hand back realizing what I had just done. I quickly ran back to my old room cursing.

That made evidence left behind. A finger print. One thing that could easily give me away, proof that I had come back. It was doubtful he would care nor bother to check. Hell, I doubted he knew how to find one. But still, I knew I shouldn't have. Why did I come here? What the hell did I want here? This was a mistake...  
At the moment a sudden realization came over me. I looked out the window. The sky was darker than when I had come. I had been sleeping here the whole day. I missed a day of school.

The school had called. The school had called his house. I thought I had been so careful all these years but really I was just fooling myself. If the school had called just now that meant that he had been receiving messages of school events, school notices. He could have assumed that the school had stopped calling after the first few days and given up but no matter how much I might believe it, he was never that stupid. He knew all along I was still around...when he threw me out he made it clear he didn't want me around. If had had bothered, though, he could have come to look for me. He still could. Because he knows where to look if he ever does need to find me.

'_He just walks in, buys a bag of chips then he drops that big of news on me.'_

I thought for a moment then, "The wedding..." I breathed. "Boarding school? A new life...a wife?" My eyes grew big. She had wanted him to change, she had wanted to take me away with her. She alone would have to wonder what was going on with me.

Everything started to make sense. It wasn't a coincidence that he had told Mark what he was doing out of the clear blue sky. He knew I was still around and close enough that it would be a possibility that Mark would see me around. No matter how much I liked to believe Jeb was stupid, I knew he wasn't. He would know if Mark had seen me he would know about everything and keep my existence a mystery. He did everything on purpose, telling Mark was a way of telling me. And if he was sending a message like that and if he was getting married soon he couldn't just make up excuses for the rest of his life...he would have to...need me. When he threw me out he wanted nothing to do with me but now, he would.

Suddenly I couldn't breathe. The walls of the room, of my past, began to close around me, trapping me in a place that I hoped not to return to. The oxygen began to be vacuumed out. I needed an exit to escape the nightmares that this fathomless building housed. Without thinking, only an instinct to escape, I threw myself through the only escape available to me. The window. The framed grabbed my side as I attempted to escape attacking my sides with viciousness as if trying to detain while I struggled to set myself free. The horrible monster that held me terrified me just as much as the ghosts that haunted this dark place of tragic memories. Twisting hard away, I managed to dislodge myself from the window frame.

Finally I felt my self free falling into a pit of nothingness until I landed with a sickening thud on my back. I laid on the grass paralyzed, the breath having been knocked out of me. It felt like endless ages until I was able to drawn in oxygen into my lungs again. My paralyzed began to slowly vanquish then realization came over me as I became increasingly aware of my surroundings filling me with complete terror.

I sprang up to my feet with the alertness of a rabbit. As if hearing the click of a gun I exploded into a sprint. I ran as fast as I could as if pursuers were at the heels of me feet. Once again I was running away. Not caring who saw me but only that I had to get away. I was not meant to come back. I didn't _want_ to come back. All these years I had been kidding myself. I wasn't free from Jeb. He had haunted me every day since I had left and just like before, he was using me as if I were some pawn in his little chess game.

"I can't. I won't. I'll never come back."

_I refuse_.  
_

* * *

**And there you have it ladies and gentlemen. I'm sorry for the horribly long wait. Let's just say these past few years have not been good for me. No excuse! I am back! All though, I do not promise to update regularly because I'm about to start my junior year and it is the most difficult year yet! So many things going on! But I hope you liked this chapter and for those of you waiting for my other story, worry not! I shall update as soon as I feel capable of doing so. (a.k.a sometime soon). P.s: Sorry for any bad grammar. I tried proofreading myself but I'm not that good at it as I'd like to believe...**


End file.
